


in spite of history, hope is january white

by scatteredmoonlight



Category: SKAM (France)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, a little angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2020-01-16 08:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18517798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scatteredmoonlight/pseuds/scatteredmoonlight
Summary: Lucas saves Eliott from a bad day by insulting raccoons. Eliott was going to skip school that day, but Lucas crossed a line. Raccoons worldwide must be avenged.





	in spite of history, hope is january white

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by Lucas's instagram  
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BwUmMuEFJug/
> 
> title is taken from the song January White by Sleeping At Last ♥

Not until his phone buzzed right beside his ear did Eliott realize that he had overslept, missed his safety bus, then his actual bus, and subsequently any opportunity of arriving to school on time. Morning rays filtered through the window, its radiance far brighter than anything associated with the hour set on his alarm clock. Which he never heard, not having slept in his bed. He existed in a primordial fuzziness, watching as sunspots flickered over vinyl records and animal sketches littering the walls, and soon grew uncomfortably aware of the dark leather of the sofa hot and sticky against his skin. He tried to remember falling asleep last night.

His phone buzzed again. Eliott watched the streaming lights a second longer, then willed himself to check the time on his phone.

07h54.

Late. So late. Another day wasted.

At this rate, he would need to beg for another tutor, unless he wanted to repeat his final year forever.

He glanced over his notifications, and a pinch of nerves exploded into butterflies in his stomach. Lucas had tagged him on Instagram seconds ago. He rolled around to face the inside of the sofa while he thumbed over to Lucas’s photo, chewing his nails to staunch a smile. Then he saw the photo and stared in stunned silence.

A pomeranian, a little on the older side by the looks of the light fur framing their eyes, sat alone by a tree. Eliott spent a second analyzing their hind legs for signs that the dog might be about to crouch or lift a leg against the tree. He fired off a text to Lucas.  _ Cute. Is it a friend’s? _

Eliott zoomed on the dog’s face and got lost staring into those large, round eyes. Every now then a haunting flicker of memory over the time intruded on him, but he only needed to stare into those dark eyes and feel at peace once more.

His phone buzzed.  _ You mean the raccoon? _ Lucas had replied. _ They’re illegal to have as pets, no? _

_ I mean the photo you tagged me in. The dog. ^^ _

_ WAIT. That’s not a raccoon?! ;-) _

Eliott stared dumbstruck at the phone. His stomach flipped and cheeks heated up.

Suddenly 7h54 did not seem so late. If he hurried, he could catch the next bus soon and be at school early enough to have only missed his first class. After all, he could not let this slight against his favorite animal slide. Maybe today was already wasted, but no mere text could avenge raccoons on this forsaken hour. And he really, really needed to kiss Lucas.

* * *

Eliott arrived too late for Latin, so he skipped it and waited for Lucas outside his French literature class. He leaned against the railing, light as a feather against the metal bars and limitless air at his back. He ought to move, not entirely secure against it, but stayed put. Soon enough the classroom door opened with the first student leaving, and all worries disappeared. There was all the chance in the universe that the next person to walk outside that door would be Lucas. Except minutes passed, no one else stepping out, and that little joy was snuffed out. Eliott’s face fell slack as his stare drilled holes into the door.

He avoided eye contact whenever possible, feeling dumber as the minutes slipped by, and figured he would text Lucas to say hello before leaving. The door opened, and by the shoes alone Eliott knew without doubt they were not Lucas. He averted his gaze and waited for them to leave, only a girl stepped in front him close enough to presume for _la_ _bise._ Eliott peered up to find Imane smiling at him and experienced a kaleidoscope of emotion. A tinge of gratitude and regret, a desperation to talk about Sofiane and yet the most urgent desire to not. He smiled, looking into her eyes for the least awkward number of seconds, and they kissed cheeks. He was genuinely glad to interact with her and hoped that he had adequately conveyed it.

“We’re taking a test,” said Imane.

Eliott nodded and smiled to soften potential aloofness. “Cool.”

“You look good today.”

Eliott wore the same thing he had fallen asleep in, which coincidentally was yesterday’s outfit, save for his socks and boxers. “Thank you. It’s hard picking between all the black shirts, but I try.”

“I look at all my black shirts, and it’s hard,” said Imane, deadpan. “Some are faded, others a little shrunk. It all affects the end result.”

She smiled kindly at him, but his chest ached. Idriss and his sister looked so alike that Eliott sometimes only saw Idriss when he looked at Imane. From the ethers of his memory, he remembered when Idriss had done laundry and shrunk the clothes so terribly, they went straight to the donation pile. Life used to be so easy before he ruined everything.

The classroom door opened, and out walked Lucas.

A singe of exhilaration lit Eliott up, and he straightened, standing a little taller. A smile stole his face as he took in the visible exhaustion from Lucas’s dimmed stare. Imane smiled at them both and left. Eliott still felt a pang of longing in her absence, but Lucas was simply so distracting. Eliott couldn’t dwell on anything for too long with that pitiful, intellectually drained boy halted before him, chin tipped up expectantly for a kiss. Brandishing every single will power within him, Eliott settled back against the railing and quirked his head.

Lucas just took a step further and peered down at Eliott’s lips. “Hello there.”

No one could resist that, thought Eliott, as he leaned into him and cradled his cheeks in his palms. He leaned his forehead against Lucas, whispering, “A raccoon?”

Lucas pecked his lips. “Mhm. I think I found another raccoon, too.” He pecked him again. Eliott watched him close his eyes in blissful relaxation and marveled at how he could make someone like Lucas feel that way. “Don’t you have class?” asked Lucas.

He sounded so bewildered, as though every ounce of brainpower not knocked out of him by that test had gathered together to form that question. Eliott kissed him properly, soft and slow and nipping when Lucas pulled away for a breath. Lucas held his wrists and stumbled as Eliott rocked against him. Eliott rested his forehead against his.

The world melted away. The sleeve of Lucas’s hoodie brushed against his skin. They rubbed noses and swayed gently where they stood. Everything else vanished and all he knew now was Lucas and him.

He took a breath, paying attention to its journey through the depths of his lungs. “I couldn’t just let you slander raccoons like that, could I?” he said.

Lucas leaned back and they gazed at each other. His eyes were a blue that went on forever. “So that  _ wasn’t _ a raccoon?”

He snickered and kissed Lucas to shut himself up.


End file.
